Supply chains can be unpredictable, that’s why it is important to get ahead and consistently analyze your company’s supply chain. Since 2020, businesses all over the world have experienced some form of supply chain disruption and have been working to recover their supply chain for the last two years. Building a resilient supply chain takes time and effort and can look different depending on your type of business. Taking the time to implement these strategies can help you eliminate those pesky disruptions, improve your resilience, and overall increase your bottom line.
Diversify Your Supply Chain Network
Multi-sourcing, nearshoring, and using multiple carriers for shipping are just a few ways that you can diversify your supply chain network. Multi-sourcing allows you to source necessary materials of one supplier is experiencing supply chain issues, nearshoring provides localized solutions versus having a dependency on one geographical location, and having multiple carriers can optimize your shipping strategies.
Identify Weak Points in Your Supply Chain
Are you noticing consistent redundancies within your supply chain? Taking time to analyze your current supply chain allows you to determine the strength and weaknesses and how much risk it can handle without mitigation. If your supply chain lacks transparency and sustainability or you are relying too heavily on a particular supplier or distributor, it may be time to analyze these weaknesses to make changes and begin building up your supply chain resilience to prepare for potential disruptions.
Keep a Safety Stock
Keeping a safety stock in your warehouse is one of the easiest methods to building a resilient supply chain. A safety stock allows your company to continuing filling customer orders in the event of a supplier shortage. Purchasing additional materials may be an added expense, as you will not need them right away but if your business is aware of customer demands and peak seasons, these products will ultimately benefit your company.
Utilize Proper Technology
Your current business technology may feel as if it integrates seamlessly with your projects, is user friendly, and allows you to efficiently fulfill orders and work on product. However, if you notice your supply chain is beginning to weaken, it may be time to start investing in more advanced technologies to build resilience within your supply chain. For example, inventory management software can provide your company with real-time visibility over your inventory, stock on hand, and supplier performance. These technologies will give you better insight to your supply chain so that you are able to make decisions that build your supply chain resilience.
Consider Outsourcing
Your business is reaching capacity, your employees are beginning to feel overwhelmed, and you no longer have the skills or knowledge to take on new projects. It may be time to consider outsourcing a reputable 3PL to take on some of the workload. Lack of proper skills, knowledge, and technology can not only effect product quality but can also slow down your customer’s supply chain, causing shortages and disruptions for all parties involved. Outsourcing a 3PL like NewStream, can eliminate this entire risk as your 3PL partner will have the proper tools to work with your customers and get their product finished accurately and efficiently.
Multi-source
Having a small network of suppliers puts your business at risk for supply chain disruptions. When your suppliers run into supply chain issues, this can snowball to your business and effect your workflow and customer satisfaction. Having diverse suppliers eliminates this risk as you are able to source from one company in the event that the other is experiencing shortages and is unable to provide you with the necessary materials.
Experiencing supply chain disruptions is stressful and you’re not sure where to begin, especially when trying to build up your resilience. As a reputable 3PL provider, NewStream understands just how finicky supply chains can be for your business. With over 30 years in supply chain management, our experts are equipped with the expertise to help you and your supply chain regardless of the problem!
Ready to build your resilience? Let’s talk, our experts are prepared to help!